Cattle Market Pulse

La Junta Livestock Commision Market Report

La Junta, Colorado · USDA-reported Auction Livestock

Sale of Wednesday, March 9, 2022

1,050 head sold ·Official USDA report

This is an archived report. See the latest La Junta Livestock Commision report →

light 6-weight M&L 1 heifers $151.61/cwt -0.08 vs last sale · ≈ $948/hd at 625 lb · 55 head
heavy 6-weight M&L 1 steers $151.41/cwt -6.82 vs last sale · ≈ $1,031/hd at 681 lb · 54 head
heavy 3-weight M&L 1 steers $225.00/cwt -4.00 vs last sale · ≈ $826/hd at 367 lb · 23 head

Receipts

HeadThis saleLast saleLast year
Total receipts 1,050 2,461 1,133
Feeder cattle 883 2,291 992
Slaughter cattle 167 170 141

Market comments — USDA reporter

Compared with last Wednesday: All weights steer's and heifer's in a light test mostly steady. Slaughter cows and bulls mostly steady. Trade and demand moderate.

New to these tables? Plain-English explainers ↓

Feeder Steers

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
367 367 23 225.00 $225.00 $826 -4.00
502 502 5 212.00 $212.00 $1,064 +4.62
551–577 562 7 194.00–195.00 $194.56 $1,093 -0.90
610 610 12 185.00 $185.00 $1,128 -6.00
677–684 681 54 148.00–156.00 $151.41 $1,031 -6.82
813 813 8 145.50 $145.50 $1,183 -1.09
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
426 426 19 209.00 $209.00 $890 —
474 474 5 205.00 $205.00 $972 +4.00
500 500 15 201.00 $201.00 $1,005 —
629 629 8 156.00 $156.00 $981 —
774 774 16 143.00 $143.00 $1,107 —

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Feeder Heifers

Medium and Large 1 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
461–482 468 17 174.00–180.00 $177.17 $829 +1.05
547 547 6 162.00 $162.00 $886 -16.90
600–645 625 55 149.00–157.00 $151.61 $948 -0.08
683 683 9 145.00 $145.00 $990 -5.94
Medium and Large 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
301 301 10 176.50 $176.50 $531 —
378 378 2 171.00 $171.00 $646 —
428 428 11 166.00 $166.00 $710 —
469 469 6 164.00 $164.00 $769 —

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Feeder Bulls

Small 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
343 343 17 214.00 $214.00 $734 —
Medium 1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
390 390 11 215.00 $215.00 $838 —

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Slaughter Cows

Breaker ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1360–1403 1398 75-80% 9 82.00–83.00 $82.89 $1,159 +4.89
1210–1845 1480 75-80% 43 84.00–88.50 $85.98 $1,273 —
Boner ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1050–1275 1155 80-85% 19 82.00–86.00 $83.81 $968 -1.70
995–1405 1172 80-85% 10 78.00–81.00 $79.53 $932 -5.98
Lean ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Dressing Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
838 838 85-90% 3 63.00 $63.00 $528 —
975–1110 1045 85-90% 8 70.00–76.00 $72.26 $755 -5.51
1007–1345 1082 85-90% 9 76.00–81.00 $77.71 $841 —

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Slaughter Bulls

YG1-2 ($/cwt)
Weight (lb) Avg wt Head Price range Avg $ ≈ $/hdΔ last sale
1417–2580 1659 16 91.00–99.00 $96.54 $1,602 -10.48
1095–2375 2048 16 101.00–108.00 $105.45 $2,160 —

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Reading this report

What does "Medium and Large 1" mean?

USDA feeder grades describe frame size and muscle thickness, not quality of the individual animal. "Medium and Large" is the frame score; the number is muscle (1 = heaviest muscled). "Medium and Large 1–2" pens mix both muscle scores — common across the Southeast.

What is $/cwt?

Dollars per hundredweight — per 100 lb of animal. A 500-lb calf at $450/cwt brings 5 × $450 = $2,250. Lighter cattle usually bring more per cwt but less per head.

Why are some prices per head?

Bred cows, cow-calf pairs, and some replacement classes sell by the head, not by weight. We show those exactly as USDA reports them — a $/head figure is never converted into $/cwt on this site.

Where do these numbers come from?

From the USDA Agricultural Marketing Service's Livestock Market News — federal reporters at the sale. We publish each report in full and link the official USDA document at the top of the page.